Ex-Democratic Party Chairman Robert Strauss, a native Texan, died at the age of 95. At the height of his powers, he was the premier powerbroker behind the secenes in American politics.

The Houston Chronicle reports that, "Bob Strauss could work with anybody — Democrats and Republicans, Americans and Soviets, Israelis and Arabs. Playing the game and making the deal made his day. Of Strauss' many accomplishments — earning a fortune in postwar investments, co-founding an international law firm, leading the Democratic Party, running one successful presidential campaign and surviving the loss of another — being welcome on either side of the political street might have been the achievement he most treasured.

Strauss was considered a great salesman when pushing forward on his ideas.

According to the Houston Chronicle, "President Ronald Reagan sought Strauss' advice when his administration was embroiled in the Iran-Contra affair. President George H.W. Bush turned to him when he needed an ambassador to the Soviet Union to represent American interests as the communist country fell apart — and when the Russian Federation took its place."

in his later years, Strauss distanced himself from the Democratic Party, since it embraced radical Leftist values.